It’s been a tumultuous time for luxury fashion brands, with departures at the helm of the brands coming thick and fast, since Alexander Wang announced his departure from Balenciaga in 2015, up until Hedi Slimane at Saint Laurent Paris just a few weeks ago.

While some of the recent departures have come from designers who have only been with their brands for a few seasons, Costa’s loss will be felt as he was with the brand for 13 years, and kept innovating.

“Calvin Klein is one of those rare heritage brands that has managed to celebrate their fashion history while always keeping it modern and elevated.

It will be a real loss to the company to have to say goodbye to such a wonderful talent, Costa’s last AW16 collection was incredibly exciting to witness, from the deconstructed proportions to the precise tailoring and luxe fabrics.

That said, it will be exciting to see what next season will look like,” says Laura Yiannakou, WGSN Associate Editor of Womenswear.

This latest announcement from Calvin Klein is part of the brand’s global evolution, said the CEO, as the brand plans to unify all Calvin Klein brands under one creative vision.

Steve Shiffman, CEO of Calvin Klein, Inc. said, “This creative strategy marks the beginning of another significant chapter in Calvin Klein’s brand legacy since Mr. Klein’s retirement. I would like to thank Francisco and Italo for their unwavering commitment to the Calvin Klein brand and their accomplishments over the past decade. They have both contributed immensely to making Calvin Klein a global leader in the fashion industry, and they have done so with dedication, focus and creativity.”

Speaking about what the move will mean for the future of the brand and luxury fashion retail as a whole, WGSN’s Senior Editor of Retail Intelligence, Petah Marian said:

“The moves reflect the continued seismic shifts that are taking place amongst luxury brands as they struggle to stay relevant with today’s customers.

It makes perfect sense that a brand’s men’s and women’s collection would be created under the same creative vision. The moves follow similar steps by brands like Gucci and Burberry, who both announced plans to combine their women’s and men’s shows earlier this year.

There is increasing cross pollination between men’s and womenswear, with styles and themes running across both collections, and from a cost perspective it makes sense to amalgamate the two. ”